I Muse... On An Intriguing Journey

I am continually fascinated by the amazing stories a postal cover can tell us, its route, the places it passes through, and even the times of arrival and departure from said places. And of course the stamps affixed to the cover can also tell a story. Recently I purchased a cover that, in my opinion, has a fantastic tale to tell. Let's listen closely to see what it has to say...

Before the full cover is revealed, first, let's consider the stamps affixed to the cover. 

On the left we have a stamp featuring an Morane-Saulnier MS 760 light aircraft. This stamp was issued 11 January 1960 as part of a four stamp Airmail series. The stamp was designed and engraved by Pierre Gandon. Incidentally, this is the second printing of this stamp. It was first issued 16 February 1969, bearing a value of 300f (old francs). The stamp on the right features the Isle of Gosier, Guadeloupe. It has a face value of 1f and was issued on 22 June 1970. This lovely stamp was designed and engraved by Pierre Béquet.  These two stamps give the cover a total face value of 4f.

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Now we can reveal the entire cover!

A beauty, isn't it! Immediately apparent from the front of the cover is that it was sent express, which probably accounts for the high franking of 4f, and that it was sent to two different locations. But more on that in a moment. From the two cancels tying the stamps to the cover, we see that it was posted on 17 August 1971 from La Faloise, Somme at 4pm. Interestingly, one of the stamps on this cover is over ten years old! Perhaps pulled from an old horde?

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Now we can turn our attention to the reverse of the cover in order to decipher the journey it took.

According to the cancels, the cover's first trip took place between 17-18 August. It left Somme at 4pm and arrived at Paris Gare du Nord at 8pm. Later that night it then left Paris Gare du Nord at 11:30pm. Its next destination was Rueil-Malmaison (Ile de la Cite, Paris) on the 18 August at 6am. The map below gives an idea of its journey.

Then something happened. Either the person was no longer at that address or they wanted the letter sent on. Whatever the case, the cover was again checked in at Rueil-Malmaison post office and was on its way again at 4:45pm that same afternoon.

Now the cover takes a much longer journey, all the way to 74 Boulevard Chanard, Quiberon, where it arrives on the 20 August at 7pm. See the map below.

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Interestingly, the cover seems to have had a short stopover at a sorting centre. Unfortunately I am unable to work out where the sorting centre is. If anyone out there has any idea where the below sorting centre is located, I'd love to hear from you.

Wow! What a journey. This is precisely why I love covers so much.

Until next time...

France 1959 - The MS 760 Paris

Watching the movie Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines as a kid fascinated me. Seeing the fantastic array of early aircraft got me well and truly hooked on aviation history. Since that day I've been captivated by the evolution of aircraft and the talent behind the different designs that grace our skies.

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The French aircraft company Aéroplanes Morane-Saulnier has a rather interesting history. It was founded in 1911 by Raymond Saulnier and the Morane brothers, Leon and Robert. The first plane this company produced was the Model A (also called the Morane-Borel), a monoplane design. This design used a wing-warping mechanism for control. This method of controlling the aircraft was developed by the Wright Brothers and first used on the Wright Flyer  in 1903. The Model A proved to be a cut above the rest when on 26 May 1911 it won the Paris to Madrid Race. The winning pilot was Jules Védrines. Below is a great pic of a Model A c. 1911.

The success of the Morane-Saulnier company continued with the Type G, the first commercially successful design, This was another monoplane with wing warping technology. This series of aircraft had a very successful racing career, setting numerous records. Originally a two-seater, the Type G was tweaked a bit and turned into a single seat fighter plane, known as the Type N. Speaking of fighting, it is interesting to note that the Morane-Saulnier company played a significant role in the development of the technology allowing a machine gun to fire through a propeller without destroying it, using what was called a Synchronisation Gear. This revolutionary technology changed the face of aerial combat in World War I.

In the early 1950s, responding to the needs of the French Air Force, the Morane-Saulnier company began designing jet trainers. Their first design, the MS.755 Fleuret, was not as effective as hoped, so they went back to the drawing board. What resulted from this was the sleek-looking four-seat aircraft, MS 760 Paris. This aircraft was used by the French Defence Forces, and it was also sold to Argentina and Brasil for use in their Air Forces.

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On 16 February 1959 France issued an airmail stamp featuring the MS 760 Paris. Incidentally, this was the last stamp issued in a series of airmail stamps that began in 1954. The stamp had a face value of 300f and it was designed and engraved by Pierre Gandon.

The detail is of lovely design is excellent. We can even see the four people sitting in the cabin.

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In 1960 the franc was revalued and called the "New Franc".100 Old Francs became 1 New Franc, or NF. With this revaluation new airmail stamps were required. This lovely stamp was re-issued with a new 3f value.

Until next time...